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Monday, November 05, 2012

One Day Until Election Day: The GOP Offers It's Final Argument With 'Top Obama Moments'

By Susan Duclos

Tomorrow is election, although for many their vote has already been cast with early voting, myself included.

The GOP has prepared list of Top Obama Moments as a reminder of why the ramainder of the electorate, those that will head to the polls and cast their vote tomorrow, shouldn't give Barack Obama another four years.

The list is below:

“PRIVATE SECTOR IS DOING FINE”

Obama Thinks “The Private Sector Is Doing Fine.”
OBAMA: “The truth of the matter is that, as I said, we’ve created 4.3
million jobs over the last 27 months, over 800,000 just this year alone.
The private sector is doing fine.” (President Barack Obama, Press Conference, Washington, D.C., 6/8/12)

“YOU DIDN’T BUILD THAT”

“I DON’T THINK THEY ARE BETTER OFF THAN THEY WERE FOUR YEARS AGO”

Obama Admitted Americans Are Not Better Off Than They Were Four Years Ago. ABC NEWS’ GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS:
“There are so many people who simply don’t think they are better off
than they were four years ago. How do you convince them that they are?”
OBAMA: “Well I don’t think they are better off than they were four years ago.
They’re not better off than they were before Lehman’s collapse, before
the financial crisis, before this extraordinary recession that we’re
going through.” (ABC News/Yahoo News’ Live Interview, 10/3/11)

“I’M THE FIRST ONE TO SAY WE’RE NOT WHERE WE NEED TO BE”

Obama: “I’m The First One To Say We’re Not Where We Need To Be.” THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ‘sBEN
FELLER: “Put yourself in the shoes of an undecided voter who says: I
don’t have a job, I can’t pay my bills, my life isn’t better – my life
isn’t better under President Obama. Why should that person vote for
you?” OBAMA: “Look, I hear from folks all the time who are still
struggling. Even if they have a job, they are still having a tough time
paying the bills. Their home may be underwater because of the housing
bubble burst. They’re still worried about saving for their retirement.
And so I’m the first one to say that we’re not where we need to be.”
(“AP Interview Transcript With President Obama,” The Associated Press, 8/25/12)

“ONE-TERM PROPOSITION”

In 2009, Obama Said “If I Don’t Have This Done In Three Years, Then There’s Going To Be A One-Term Proposition.”
OBAMA: “That’s exactly right. And – and, you know, a year from now I
think people – are going to see that – we’re starting to make some
progress. But there’s still going to be some pain out there. If I don’t
have this done in three years, then there’s going to be a one-term
proposition.” (NBC’s ” The Today Show,” 2/2/09)

“YOU CAN’T CHANGE WASHINGTON FROM THE INSIDE. YOU CAN ONLY CHANGE IT FROM THE OUTSIDE”

Obama: “[T]he Most Important Lesson I’ve Learned Is That You
Can’t Change Washington From The Inside. You Can Only Change It From
The Outside.” UNIVISION’S JORGE RAMOS: “There is something
different, something personal. I don’t know what you are reading before
going to sleep right now. I don’t know if you have already read the book
‘No Easy Day’ in which a Navy SEAL tells the story of how Osama Bin
Laden was killed. According to many his death was your biggest
achievement. What is your biggest failure?” OBAMA: “Well, Jorge as you
remind me, my biggest failure so far is we haven’t gotten comprehensive
immigration reform done, so we’re going to be continuing to work on
that. But it’s not for lack of trying or desire. And I’m confident we’re
going to accomplish that. You know what-obviously, the fact that we
haven’t been able to change the tone in Washington is disappointing. We
know now that as soon as I came into office you already had meetings
among some of our Republican colleagues saying, ‘How do we figure out
how to beat the president?’ And I think that I’ve learned some lessons
over the last four years, and the most important lesson I’ve learned is
that you can’t change Washington from the inside. You can only change it
from the outside.” (President Barack Obama, Univision Town Hall, Miami, FL, 9/20/12)

“NOT AS SHOVEL-READY”

Obama “Cracked Wise” About The Jobs His “Shovel-Ready” Stimulus Was Supposed To Create.
“While meeting with his Jobs and Competitiveness Council today in
Durham, N.C., President Obama cracked wise about one of his
administration’s early catchphrases. Remember ‘shovel-ready projects.’
Those were construction projects in the 2009 stimulus bill that were
supposed to get moving right away — but jobs council members told Obama
today that some got held up because of elaborate government regulations
and permitting procedures.” (David Jackson, “Obama Jokes About
‘Shovel-Ready Projects,” USA Today, 6/13/11)

Obama: “Shovel-Ready Was Not As Shovel-Ready As We Expected.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks In Durham, N.C., 6/13/11)

“BUMPS IN THE ROAD”

Obama Described Terrorist Attack In Libya And Unrest Throughout The Middle East As “Bumps In The Road.”
CBS’s STEVE KROFT: “Have recent events in the Middle East given you any
pause about your support for the governments that have come to power
following the Arab Spring?” OBAMA: “Well, I’d said even at the time that
this is going to be a rocky path. The question presumes that somehow we
could have stopped this wave of change. I think it was absolutely the
right thing for us to do to align ourselves with democracy, universal
rights– a notion that– people have- to be able to– participate– in–
their own governance. But I was pretty certain and continue to be pretty
certain that there are going to be bumps in the road because– you know,
in a lot of these places– the one organizing principle– has been Islam.
The one part of society that hasn’t been controlled completely by the
government. There are strains of extremism, and anti-Americanism, and
anti-Western sentiment. And you know can be tapped into by demagogues.
There will probably be some times where we bump up against some of these
countries and have strong disagreements, but I do think that over the
long term, we are more likely to get a Middle East and North Africa that
is more peaceful, more prosperous and more aligned with our interests.”
(CBS’s ” 60 Minutes,” 9/23/12)

Obama Dismissed A Rise In The Unemployment Rate By Saying “There Are Always Going To Be Bumps On The Road To Recovery.”
OBAMA: “There are always going to be bumps on the road to recovery.
We’re going to pass through some rough terrain that even a Wrangler
would have a hard time with. We know that.”(President Barack Obama, Remarks By The President To Chrysler Workers, Toledo, Ohio, 6/3/11)

Obama To Russian President Medvedev: “After My Election I Have More Flexibility.”
OBAMA: “On all these issues, but particularly missile defense, this,
this can be solved but it’s important for him to give me space.”
MEDVEDEV: “Yeah, I understand. I understand your message about space.
Space for you…” OBAMA: “This is my last election. After my election I have more flexibility.”
MEDVEDEV: “I understand. I will transmit this information to Vladimir.”
(Jake Tapper, “President Obama Asks Medvedev For ‘Space’ On Missile
Defense – ‘After My Election I Have More Flexibility,’” ABC News, 3/26/12)

“CUT THE DEFICIT IN HALF BY THE END OF MY FIRST TERM IN OFFICE”

In An Address To A Joint Session Of Congress, Obama Promised To Cut The Deficit In Half By THe End Of His First Term.
OBAMA: “Yesterday, I held a fiscal summit where I pledged to cut the
deficit in half by the end of my first term in office.” (President
Obama, Address to Joint Session of Congress, 2/24/09)

Obama Already Promised To Cut The Deficit In Half By The End Of His First Term The Day Before He Addressed Congress.
OBAMA: “And that’s why today I’m pledging to cut the deficit we
inherited in half by the end of my first term in office. This will not
be easy. It will require us to make difficult decisions and face
challenges we’ve long neglected. But I refuse to leave our children with
a debt that they cannot repay — and that means taking responsibility
right now, in this administration, for getting our spending under
control.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks At White House Fiscal Responsibility Summit, Washington, D.C., 2/23/09)

NOTE: The Congressional Budget Office
Estimated The FY 2012 Budget Deficit At $1.1 Trillion, “The Fourth
Straight Year Of Trillion Dollar Deficits On President Barack Obama’s
Watch.” “A new estimate puts the deficit for the
just-completed 2012 budget year at $1.1 trillion, the fourth straight
year of trillion dollar deficits on President Barack Obama’s watch. The
result was a slight $207 billion improvement from the 2011 deficit of
$1.3 trillion. The bleak figures from the Congressional Budget Office,
while expected, add fodder for the heated presidential campaign, in
which Obama’s handling of the economy and the budget is a main topic.”
(Andrew Taylor, “CBO Tallies 2012 Deficit At $1.1T,” The Associated Press, 10/5/12)

“THE TRUE ENGINE OF ECONOMIC GROWTH WILL ALWAYS BE COMPANIES LIKE SOLYNDRA”

On May 26, 2010, Obama Toured Fremont, CA-Based Solyndra,
Declaring “The True Engine Of Economic Growth Will Always Be Companies
Like Solyndra…” OBAMA: “The true engine of economic growth will always be companies like Solyndra, will always be America’s businesses.” (President Obama, Remarks By The President On The Economy, Fremont, California, 5/26/10)

“THINGAMAJIG”

Obama Thinks Buying A “Thingamajig” Will Fix The Economy.
OBAMA: “There are some folks here that can use $3,000 a year. Let’s get
that done right now. If you’ve got $3,000 a year extra, that helps you
pay down your credit cards, that helps you go out and buy some things
that your family needs, which is good for business. Maybe somebody will
be replacing some thingamajig for their furnace. They’ve been putting
that off. But if they’ve got that extra money, they might just go out
there and buy that thing. Right?” (President Barack Obama, Remarks, Golden Valley, MN, 6/1/12)

RAISING TAXES

Obama Admits He Wants To Raise Taxes In 2013 If He Is Reelected.
OBAMA: “That is a reasonable proposition. So, when you hear folks
saying ‘Well, the president shouldn’t want massive job killing tax
increases when the economy is this weak.’ Nobody’s looking to raise
taxes right now. We’re talking about potentially 2013 and the
out-years.” (President Barack Obama, Press Conference, Washington, DC, 7/11/11)

NOT TELLING STORY BETTER

Obama Said The Biggest Mistake Of His First Term Was Not Telling A Story To The American People.
“Mr. Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama sat down Thursday with ‘CBS
This Morning’ anchor Charlie Rose in the White House Blue Room, where
they discussed the failures and successes of his administration as he
heads into another election, among other things. ‘
The mistake of my first term – couple of years – was thinking that this
job was just about getting the policy right. And that’s important, but,
you know, the nature of this office is also to tell a story to
the American people that gives them a sense of unity and purpose and
optimism, especially during tough times.’” (Lindsey Boerma, “Obama
Reflects On His Biggest Mistake As President,” CBS, 7/12/12)

GRADE: “INCOMPLETE”

Obama Gives Himself An “Incomplete” On The Economy.
REPORTER: “Your party says you inherited a bad situation, you’ve had
three and a half years to fix it, what grade would you give yourself so
far for doing that?” OBAMA: “You know, I would say incomplete.” (KKTV [Colorado Springs, CO], 9/3/12)

BLAME ARAB SPRING, JAPANESE EARTHQUAKE, EUROPE, ATMS, AIRPORT KIOSKS

Obama Has Blamed Poor Economic Numbers On The Arab Spring, The Japanese Earthquake, And Events In Europe.
OBAMA: “Let me start by saying a few words about our economy. There is
no doubt this has been a tumultuous year. We’ve weathered the Arab
Spring’s effect on oil and gas prices, the Japanese earthquake and
tsunami’s effect on supply chains, the extraordinary economic
uncertainty in Europe. And recently, markets around the globe have taken
a bumpy ride.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks By The President On The Administration’s Work To Prepare Our Nation’s Veterans For The Workforce, Washington, D.C., 8/5/11)

Obama Has Blamed ATMs And Airport Kiosks For His Failure To Create Jobs.
OBAMA: “[T]here are some structural issues with our economy, where a
lot of businesses have learned to become much more efficient, with a lot
fewer workers. You see it when you go to the bank and use an ATM — you
don’t go to a bank teller. Or you go to the airport, and you’re using a
kiosk, instead of checking in at the gate.” (NBC’s “Today,” 6/14/11)